Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an arrangement for current supply of electrical users arranged in a motor vehicle, wherein at least one electrical voltage source is mounted in the motor vehicle, by means of which the users are electrically conductively connected, and wherein electrically conductive guide members are arranged in the bottom part of the motor vehicle, which at one of their ends are each electrically conductively connected to one of the poles of the voltage source.
Such an arrangement is disclosed, for example, in JP 2006 290 227 A.
Description of the Related Art
The arrangement constitutes international prior art and is present essentially in all motor vehicles, in the following called “vehicle” for short. At least one battery is mounted in the vehicle which, especially in the case of electric vehicles, may also be rechargeable. In the following, the word “battery” is used instead of the word “voltage source.”
In accordance with conventional technology, the electrical lines mounted in a vehicle are combined into a unit in so-called wiring harnesses. Conventional wiring harnesses are disclosed, for example, in printed documents DE 37 10 642 A1, DE 36 09 704 A1 and DE 36 16 649 A1. The electrical users of a vehicle are connected through the electrical lines to the battery of the vehicle.
The electrical conductors of a wiring harness have different lengths and as a rule, also different cross sections. Because of the, in most cases, large number of individual conductors to be connected into a unit, not only the manufacture of a wiring harness is complicated, but also its placement in the vehicle is complicated if, for example, users present in the rear portion of the vehicle are to be connected to the battery.
JP 2006 290 227 A describes an arrangement, which as a relatively short unit, is mounted in the area of the instruments of a vehicle and projects into the intermediate space between the driver's seat and the passenger seat. A structural component is slidably arranged on two electrically conductive guide members connected to a voltage source and mounted at the bottom of the vehicle. It serves, for example, for connecting a CD-device or a DVD-device arranged in the instrument panel. The structural component may be locked in a predetermined position by means of a lever.
3. Objects and Summary
The invention is based on the object of further developing the above described arrangement in such a way so that the users mounted in a vehicle can be connected to the battery in a simpler manner.
In accordance with the invention, this object is met in                that the guide members are in double function electrical conductors on the one hand, and support elements on the other hand, wherein the support elements extend in the motor vehicle in a length which is suitable for their function as mechanically stable supports for the superstructure of the motor vehicle, and        that the support elements have contact points in their function as electrical conductors over their entire length, which are separated from each other for the electrically conductive connection of the users of the motor vehicle.        
In this arrangement, two support elements are used which, on the one hand, serve as mechanically stable support members for the superstructure of a vehicle and, on the other hand, as a type of current rails for the electrically conductive connection of the user to the battery of the vehicle. The support elements have contact points over their entire length to which individual conductors leading to the users, or also two or more conductors which have been previously combined and have a relatively short length, can be connected, wherein the length essentially depends only on the distance of the users from one of the contact points or of two complementary contact points of the support elements. In this connection, the position of the battery within the vehicle is of no significance. Since the support elements extend over the entire length of the vehicle, particularly in the rear portion of the vehicle, significant simplifications are obtained because also the users located there can be connected to the contact points of the support elements through relatively short lines. This advantage is particularly significant if the battery of the vehicle is mounted in the engine compartment, i.e., a far distance away from the rear portion of the vehicle.